Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This study sought to examine independent clause Sesotho personal names as authentic social discourse using the Systemic Functional Linguistics (SFL) theory. It sought to analyze their structure and map them to social functions to demonstrate that they are enacted messages in socio-cultural context of Basotho. It used a form-meaning approach to interpret Sesotho names in socio-cultural contexts of use (cf. Halliday 1994, 2001, Eggins, 1996, 2004 and Martin & Rose 2007) as an alternative to the current formalist approach to onomastica interpretation. The SFL analysis was compared and contrasted mainly with the formalist syntactic specific and semantic specific analyses currently in use by Guma, Sesotho Academy and subsequent authors of Sesotho grammar and other linguists. The purpose of displaying these names as texts in social context enfolded the intent to reflect a systemic interface of lexico-grammar and social activity. The study used the clause-text-culture paradigm to explore Sesotho names as texts or semantic units. The idea was to access their ‘meanings beyond the clause’ (Martin & Rose 2007). Data was collected from national examinations pass lists, admission and employment roll lists from Public, Private, Tertiary, Orphanage institutions. Other data was identified in Telephone directories and Media. The purely linguistic lexico-grammatic analysis of the structure of names was supplemented by interview data from real interpretations from families, owners and senior citizens who have social and cultural knowledge of the meanings of some names. The study has established that Sesotho personal names can present as an independent clause feature. Sesotho personal names can also be described as lexico-grammatical properties and are meaningful in social contexts. They are used to exchange information as statements, demands and commands, and as questions and as exclamations. This means that these names can be categorized according to Halliday’s Mood types which make them function as declaratives, imperatives, interrogatives and exclamatives depending on the awarder’s evaluation. The study also finds that in negotiating attitudes, modality is highly incorporated. The study concludes that Sesotho names conform to the logical structures of the nominal group and the verbal group and these groups reciprocate in use. The verbal group is the core constituent in these names and it serves as a foundation for the nominal and verbal groups particularly because they function as reciprocating propositions. This includes the names with the sub-modification features. This extends the formalist description of Sesotho independent clause in that the identified sub-modifications which are opague and taken for granted by formalist analysts of Sesotho, are explicated as essential elements embedded in the formmeaning relation in SFL. The main contribution is that this is the only study on SFL and onomastica. There is no study that has been conducted using SFL to describe African names. It presents that Sesotho personal names are texts that have been negotiated in socio-cultural contexts. It provides a major departure from most studies that have used the Chomskian formulations or other sociolinguistic theories to describe the naming systems. It displays the art and importance of language use based on experience and culture in the naming system. The study also contributes to fields such as education, history, and others. Lastly, the study has established a new relation of onomastica and SFL theory and onomastica can now be added to the areas “being recognized as providing a very useful descriptive and interpretive framework for viewing language as a strategic, meaning-making resource.” (Eggins 1996:1).

Sociolinguists have documented the substrate influence of various languages on the formation of dialects in numerous ethnic-regional setting throughout the United States. This literature shows that while phonological and grammatical influences from other languages may be instantiated as durable dialect features, lexical phenomena often fade over time as ethnolinguistic communities assimilate with contiguous dialect groups. In preliminary investigations of emerging Miami Latino English, we have observed that lexical forms based on Spanish lexical forms are not only ubiquitous among the speech of the first generation Cuban Americans but also of the second. Examples, observed in field work, casual observation, and studied formally in an experimental context include the following: “get down from the car,” which derives from the Spanish equivalent, bajar del carro instead of “get out of the car”. The translation task administered to thirty-one participants showed a variety lexical phenomena are still maintained at equal or higher frequencies.

L'objectif de cette thèse est d'étudier le développement du système lexico-sémantique chez les enfants monolingues et bilingues. La question posée est la suivante : quand et comment les significations des mots commencent à être reliées entre elles et à s'intégrer dans un système sémantique interconnecté. Dans un premier temps, trois études ont été menées chez des enfants monolingues français. L'Etude 1, a pour but d'observer si les mots sont organisés selon des liens taxonomiques (e.g., cochon - cheval). L'Etude 2 explore si l'effet d'amorçage sémantique est sous-tendu par des mécanismes cognitifs, comme les processus d'activation automatique et contrôlé. Puis enfin, l'Etude 3 observe si les mots sont organisés en fonction de leur distance de similarité sémantique (e.g., vache - mouton versus vache - cerf). Dans un deuxième temps, deux études ont été conduites chez des enfants apprenant deux langues simultanément. L'Etude 4 vise à déterminer si les mots sont taxonomiquement liés dans chacune des langues. L'Etude 5 explore si les mots présentés dans une langue activent leurs représentations sémantiques dans l'autre langue et vice versa. Dans le but de répondre à ces questions, le traitement lexico-sémantique a été étudié en utilisant deux techniques : l'eye-tracking et les potentiels évoqués (PEs). Ces deux techniques enregistrent lors de la présentation des mots des réponses comportementales (Etude 3) et neuronales (Etude 1, 2, 4 et 5) de haute résolution temporelle. Les Etudes 1 et 2 montrent que chez les monolingues les mots sont liés taxonomiquement à l'âge de 18 et 24 mois. Durant le développement du langage, les deux processus d'activation automatique et contrôlé sont impliqués dans le traitement des mots (Etude 2). L'Etude 3 montre qu'à 24 mois, les mots sont organisés dans le système lexico-sémantique en développement selon la distance des similarités sémantiques. L'Etude 4 montre que chez les enfants bilingues, le traitement sémantique ne diffère pas selon les deux langues, mais la topographie des PEs varie selon la langue traitée. L'Etude 5 montre que les mots présentés dans une langue activent leurs représentations sémantiques dans la deuxième langue et vice versa. Toutefois, la topographie des PEs est modulée selon la direction de traduction. Ces résultats suggèrent que l'acquisition de deux langues, bien qu'elle soit très précoce, requière deux ressources neuronales bien distinctes, sous-tendant ainsi le traitement lexico-sémantique des langues dominante et non-dominante. / The present doctoral research explored the developing lexical-semantic system in monolingual and bilingual toddlers. The question of how and when word meanings are first related to each other and become integrated into an interconnected semantic system was investigated. Three studies were conducted with monolingual French learning children which aimed at exploring how words are organized, that is, according to taxonomic relationships (e.g., pig - horse) and to semantic similarity distances between words (e.g., cow - sheep versus cow - deer), and whether cognitive mechanisms, such as automatic activation and controlled processes, underlie priming effects. An additional two studies conducted with children learning two languages simultaneously, aimed at determining, first, whether taxonomically related word meanings, in each of the two languages, are processed in a similar manner. The second goal was to explore whether words presented in one language activate words in another language, and vice versa. In an attempt to answer these questions, lexical-semantic processing was explored by two techniques: eye-tracking and event-related potentials (ERPs) techniques. Both techniques provide high temporal resolution measures of word processing but differ in terms of responses. Eye-movement measurements (Study III) reflect looking preferences in response to spoken words and their time-course, whereas ERPs reflect implicit brain responses and their activity patterns (Study I, II, IV, and V). Study I and II revealed that words are taxonomically organized at 18 and 24-month-olds. Both automatic and controlled processes were shown to be involved in word processing during language development (Study II). Study III revealed that at 24-month-olds, categorical and feature overlap between items underpin the developing lexical-semantic system. That is, lexical-items in each semantic category are organized according to graded similarity distances. Productive vocabulary skills influenced word recognition and were related to underlying cognitive mechanisms. Study IV revealed no differences in terms of semantic processing in the bilinguals¿ two languages, but the ERP distribution across the scalp varied according to the language being processed. Study V showed that words presented in one language activate their semantic representations in the second language and the other way around. The distribution of the ERPs depended, however, on the direction of translation. The results suggest that even early dual language experience yields distinct neural resources underlying lexical-semantic processing in the dominant and non-dominant languages during language acquisition.

L'objectif de cette thèse est d'étudier le développement du système lexico-sémantique chez les enfants monolingues et bilingues. La question posée est la suivante : quand et comment les significations des mots commencent à être reliées entre elles et à s'intégrer dans un système sémantique interconnecté. Dans un premier temps, trois études ont été menées chez des enfants monolingues français. L'Etude 1, a pour but d'observer si les mots sont organisés selon des liens taxonomiques (e.g., cochon - cheval). L'Etude 2 explore si l'effet d'amorçage sémantique est sous-tendu par des mécanismes cognitifs, comme les processus d'activation automatique et contrôlé. Puis enfin, l'Etude 3 observe si les mots sont organisés en fonction de leur distance de similarité sémantique (e.g., vache - mouton versus vache - cerf). Dans un deuxième temps, deux études ont été conduites chez des enfants apprenant deux langues simultanément. L'Etude 4 vise à déterminer si les mots sont taxonomiquement liés dans chacune des langues. L'Etude 5 explore si les mots présentés dans une langue activent leurs représentations sémantiques dans l'autre langue et vice versa. Dans le but de répondre à ces questions, le traitement lexico-sémantique a été étudié en utilisant deux techniques : l'eye-tracking et les potentiels évoqués (PEs). Ces deux techniques enregistrent lors de la présentation des mots des réponses comportementales (Etude 3) et neuronales (Etude 1, 2, 4 et 5) de haute résolution temporelle. Les Etudes 1 et 2 montrent que chez les monolingues les mots sont liés taxonomiquement à l'âge de 18 et 24 mois. Durant le développement du langage, les deux processus d'activation automatique et contrôlé sont impliqués dans le traitement des mots (Etude 2). L'Etude 3 montre qu'à 24 mois, les mots sont organisés dans le système lexico-sémantique en développement selon la distance des similarités sémantiques. L'Etude 4 montre que chez les enfants bilingues, le traitement sémantique ne diffère pas selon les deux langues, mais la topographie des PEs varie selon la langue traitée. L'Etude 5 montre que les mots présentés dans une langue activent leurs représentations sémantiques dans la deuxième langue et vice versa. Toutefois, la topographie des PEs est modulée selon la direction de traduction. Ces résultats suggèrent que l'acquisition de deux langues, bien qu'elle soit très précoce, requière deux ressources neuronales bien distinctes, sous-tendant ainsi le traitement lexico-sémantique des langues dominante et non-dominante. / The present doctoral research explored the developing lexical-semantic system in monolingual and bilingual toddlers. The question of how and when word meanings are first related to each other and become integrated into an interconnected semantic system was investigated. Three studies were conducted with monolingual French learning children which aimed at exploring how words are organized, that is, according to taxonomic relationships (e.g., pig - horse) and to semantic similarity distances between words (e.g., cow - sheep versus cow - deer), and whether cognitive mechanisms, such as automatic activation and controlled processes, underlie priming effects. An additional two studies conducted with children learning two languages simultaneously, aimed at determining, first, whether taxonomically related word meanings, in each of the two languages, are processed in a similar manner. The second goal was to explore whether words presented in one language activate words in another language, and vice versa. In an attempt to answer these questions, lexical-semantic processing was explored by two techniques: eye-tracking and event-related potentials (ERPs) techniques. Both techniques provide high temporal resolution measures of word processing but differ in terms of responses. Eye-movement measurements (Study III) reflect looking preferences in response to spoken words and their time-course, whereas ERPs reflect implicit brain responses and their activity patterns (Study I, II, IV, and V). Study I and II revealed that words are taxonomically organized at 18 and 24-month-olds. Both automatic and controlled processes were shown to be involved in word processing during language development (Study II). Study III revealed that at 24-month-olds, categorical and feature overlap between items underpin the developing lexical-semantic system. That is, lexical-items in each semantic category are organized according to graded similarity distances. Productive vocabulary skills influenced word recognition and were related to underlying cognitive mechanisms. Study IV revealed no differences in terms of semantic processing in the bilinguals¿ two languages, but the ERP distribution across the scalp varied according to the language being processed. Study V showed that words presented in one language activate their semantic representations in the second language and the other way around. The distribution of the ERPs depended, however, on the direction of translation. The results suggest that even early dual language experience yields distinct neural resources underlying lexical-semantic processing in the dominant and non-dominant languages during language acquisition.

The dissertation is devoted to the complex comparative analysis of the semantics of lexical units of lexical-semantic field smell. The work consists of introduction, three chapters, conclusion, lists of bibliography and dictionaries. There are the volume and composition of lexico-semantic fields smell defined, principles of its organization in Russian and Chinese languages identified, the semantics of the nuclear units and comparative analysis of sites of lexico-semantic field describes, the national specifics of Russian olfaktor’s picture of the world in comparison with the Chinese shows in the work. This work is intended for specialists who are interested in the similarities and differences between the Chinese and Russian language picture of the world. / Диссертация посвящена комплексному сопоставительному анализу семантики лексических единиц лексико-семантического поля запах. Работа включает введение, три главы, заключение, списки использованной литературы и словарей. В работе определены объем и состав лексико-семантического поля, выявлены принципы его организации в русском и китайском языках, описана семантика ядерных единиц и проведен сопоставительный анализ участков лексико-семантического поля, показана национальная специфика русской ольфакторной картины мира в сопоставлении с китайской. Работа предназначена для специалистов, которых интересуют сходства и различия между русской и китайской языковыми картинами мира.

L’objectif de cette recherche en linguistique de corpus est d’appliquer, suivant les concepts et principes de la sémantique interprétative, une méthode d’analyse contrastive de textes pour l’apprentissage de la langue arabe, en utilisant l’outil de textométrie Lexico 3. Cette étude se base sur deux corpus : l’un de discours journalistiques (thème des révolutions arabes de 2011), et l’autre de discours politiques (de Gamal Abdel Nasser et Anouar Sadate). Nous posons l’hypothèse que, d’une part, la sémantique outillée permet de caractériser les orientations idéologiques et politiques des différents énonciateurs. D’autre part, nous supposons que les analyses permettront de proposer des pistes didactiques applicables dans le cadre d’un apprentissage de la langue arabe, et en particulier pour la compréhension et la production écrites.La première partie de cette étude présente la linguistique de corpus, situe et décrit la sémantique des textes dans les sciences du langage et expose quelques caractéristiques de la langue arabe. La deuxième partie présente nos analyses de textes journalistiques et politiques et met en évidence, les positions des journaux vis-à-vis des révolutions en Égypte et au Bahreïn et expose, les différences d’énonciation des deux présidents égyptiens sur les politiques conduites en Égypte et dans le monde arabe.La troisième et dernière partie présente le volet théorique et pratique de nos pistes didactiques. Elle ancre notre positionnement sur l’interdisciplinarité, en faisant appel au paradigme des "connaissances" (qui se distingue de la notion de "compétence") en didactique des langues. Cette partie décrit, enfin, l’expérimentation avec sept étudiants de langue arabe. Elle montre les difficultés et les apports de cette expérimentation et montre qu’il est possible de penser un processus de conscientisation vis-à-vis des données langagières, qui doit, en outre, marquer une rupture avec la simple transmission d’informations à l’apprenant. / The purpose of this research in corpus linguistics is to apply, in accordance with the concepts and principals of interpretive semantics, a method of contrastive analysis of texts for learning Arabic using the Textometry tool Lexico 3. It is based on two corpora: a journalistic discourse (from Arab revolutions of 2011), and political speeches (from Gamal Abdel Nasser and Anwar Sadat). We postulate that the Corpus Semantics allows us to characterize the ideological and political orientation of the different enunciators. Furthermore we assume that the study will provide practical didactic approaches in the context of learning the Arabic language, in particular for the understanding and writing learning.The first part of this study presents the Corpus Linguistics, situates and describes the Interpretive Semantics theory in the linguistics field and shows some characteristics of the Arabic language. The second part presents our analyses of journalistic and political texts, highlighting the stance of newspapers on the revolutions in Egypt and Bahrain and exposes the differences in articulation between two Egyptian presidents regarding their policies in Egypt and in the Arab world.The third and last part presents the theoretical and practical component of our educational tracks. It anchors our work on the interdisciplinarity by drawing on the paradigm of "knowledge" in language teaching (which is distinct from the notion of "competence"). This section describes the experiment with seven students of Arabic. It shows the difficulties and the benefits of this experiment and demonstrates that it is possible to think of a process of awareness in regards to the language data, which must, amongst other points, mark a break from the simple transmission of information to the learner.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-28T18:23:46Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rejane Loli.pdf: 288664 bytes, checksum: 94a229361095a0b4954305cb84b21ab4 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-06-12 / Self-help books have presented the largest growth and are also responsible for the new best-sellers in the market. Marketdata research institute estimates that the world market of self-help books generated about US$8.5 billions in 2003. They reckon the total size of this market can reach more than US$11 billions in 2008. We can note that the self in self-help, as well as the self in self-learning, means learning without being followed by a teacher. It does not mean self-help, but that one can help him or herself with the help of a book, written by someone else. There is a writer passing their ideas on to a reader, hoping they will be accepted. Thus, the question is: how can a self-help book writer convince their reader of the validity of their statements? Persuasion, mainly implicit persuasion, is not always realized by clearly persuasive adjectives and adverbs, but also by certain lexico-grammatical choices which, in specific contexts, make a text extremely persuasive. This kind of persuasion takes place gradually throughout the text and may be extremelly efficient. Considering the undeniable success of these books, I found it justifiable to develop a study about the self-help text, analyzing it according to the point of view of the discourse, focusing on how the writer transmits his idea in order to get the reader s adhesion. To do so, I will use the critical discourse analysis which, by studying the social and historical situation of a text, aims at bringing to the readers knowledge the patterns of values and beliefs codified in the language invisible for those who take discourse as natural . I hope to analyze the lexico-grammatical choices made by the writer in order to persuade, explicitelly or implicitelly, the reader in the self-help books. For this, I will use Halliday s (1994) systemic-functional linguistics, specially the simultaneous action of the ideational, interpersonal and textual metafunctions, and also some recent contributions in terms of the writer s positioning towards the text and content evaluation. So, I will use, specially, in Martin (2000; 2003), that, with the token nocion value, frame (Goatly 1997; Bednarek 2005); in crypto-argumentacion (Kitis e Milapídes, 1996); textual world (Downing, 2003) and Semino (1997) / Os livros de auto-ajuda constituem um dos segmentos com maior crescimento e é também o responsável pelos novos best-sellers do mercado. O instituto de pesquisas Marketdata estima que o mercado mundial da auto-ajuda movimentou cerca de US$8.5 bilhões em 2003. Eles estimam que o tamanho total desse mercado pode alcançar mais de US$11 bilhões em 2008. Notemos que o auto de auto-ajuda, tal como em auto-didata, significa aprendizagem sem o acompanhamento de um mestre. Não quer dizer que a pessoa se ajude a si mesma, mas com a ajuda de um livro, que foi escrito por alguém. Há um autor que passa suas idéias para o leitor, esperando que este aceite suas idéias e sugestões. Então, cabe a pergunta: de que maneira o autor de um livro de auto-ajuda convence seu leitor da validade de suas afirmações? A persuasão, em especial a persuasão implícita, que permeia o texto, nem sempre é realizada por adjetivos e advérbios claramente persuasivos, mas graças também a determinadas escolhas léxico-gramaticais, não consideradas interpessoais na tradição, que, combinadas a contextos específicos, tornam-no altamente persuasivo. Esse tipo de persuasão, que acontece cumulativamente conforme o texto se desenrola pode ser extremamente eficaz em certos contextos. Diante do inegável sucesso de vendas desses livros, pareceu-me justificável promover um estudo a respeito do texto de auto-ajuda, analisando-o do ponto de vista do discurso, mais especificamente no que diz respeito ao modo como o escritor tenta passar suas idéias para conseguir a adesão do leitor. Para examinar essa questão, recorro à análise crítica, a qual procura, estudando detalhes da estrutura lingüística à luz da situação social e histórica de um texto, trazer, para o nível da consciência, os padrões de crenças e valores codificados na língua que estão subjacentes à notícia e que são invisíveis para quem aceita o discurso como algo natural . Espero examinar as escolhas léxico-gramaticais feitas pelo autor, Roberto Shinyashiki (2005), Heróis de Verdade,com vistas à persuasão tanto explícita quanto implícita no texto de auto-ajuda. Para tanto, apóio-me na lingüística sistêmico-funcional, de Halliday (1994), em especial, na atuação simultânea das metafunções ideacional, interpessoal e textual, incluindo as contribuições que a teoria tem recebido em recente data, principalmente no tocante ao posicionamento do escritor bem como da sua avaliação do conteúdo no desenrolar do texto. Assim, apóio-me em especial em Martin (2000; 2003), que, com a noção de token de avaliação, mostra a fusão da metafunção ideacional com a interpessoal; na noção de frame (Goatly 1997; Bednarek 2005), que explica a introdução pelo leitor de seu conhecimento prévio, desencadeado por elementos do texto; na construção da crypto-argumentação (Kitis e Milapídes, 1996), que trata de sobreposição de gêneros discursivos em função da persuasão; na montagem de um mundo textual (Downing, 2003) e Semino (1997), tendo em vista o leitor ideal . Dessa forma, espero desvendar a ideologia que permeia o texto e entender como é feita a persuasão no livro analisado

Material addicional: http://hdl.handle.net/10230/6325 / La tesi, en el marc de la Teoria Comunicativa de la Terminologia (TCT), es proposa observar els elements d'activació del valor terminològic en els verbs fraseològics del discurs especialitzat. Es descriuen, a diferents nivells, la sintaxi i la semàntica de verbs fraseològics d'ús comú i freqüents en textos d'economia i de genòmica, i es detecten diferències i semblances en el seu comportament en ambdós discursos d'especialitat per establir tendències.A partir de les anàlisis, identifiquem les construccions verbals mínimes que són unitats de coneixement especialitzat (UCE) i observem si els verbs que fan de nucli sintàctic d'aquests sintagmes sofreixen canvis semàntics en els contextos especialitzats. Alhora, reinterpretem la proposta de factors d'activació d'Adelstein (2007) per als verbs, i confirmem empíricament diversos supòsits de la TCT sobre la polisèmia.La tesi consta de tres parts: els fonaments de la recerca, l'anàlisi sintacticosemàntica del corpus, i els resultats i conclusions. / La tesis, en el marco de la Teoría Comunicativa de la Terminología (TCT), se propone observar los elementos de activación del valor terminológico en los verbos fraseológicos del discurso especializado. Se describe, a distintos niveles, la sintaxis y la semántica de los verbos fraseológicos de uso común y frecuentes en textos de economía y de genómica, y se detectan diferencias y similitudes en su comportamiento en ambos discursos de especialidad para establecer tendencias.A partir de los análisis, identificamos las construcciones verbales mínimas que son unidades de conocimiento especializado (UCE) y observamos si los verbos que funcionan como núcleo sintáctico de estos sintagmas sufren cambios semánticos en los contextos especializados. Asimismo, reinterpretamos la propuesta de factores de activación de Adelstein (2007) para los verbos, y confirmamos empíricamente distintos supuestos de la TCT sobre la polisemia.La tesis consta de tres partes: los fundamentos de la investigación, el análisis sintacticosemántico del corpus, i los resultados y conclusiones. / This thesis, within the frame of the Communicative Theory of Terminology (CTT), aims at observing the terminological-value activating elements of phraseological verbs in specialized discourse. Syntax and Semantics of common use and frequent phraseological verbs in Economy and Genomic texts are described at different levels, and differences and similarities in their behavior in both domain discourses are detected to establish tendencies.From the analysis, we identify the minimal verbal constructions working as specialized knowledge units (SKU) and we observe if the verbs being the syntactic core of these groups suffer semantic changes in specialized contexts. Moreover, we reinterpret for verbs the activation factors proposal by Adelstein (2007, and we empirically confirm different assumptions of CTT on polysemy.The thesis has three parts: the basis of the research, the syntax-semantic analysis of the corpus, and the results and conclusions

Studies in Genre Analysis have been developed with the aim of exploring the typification of genres of the work environment and interpreting their funtions according to the discursive communities in which they operate. Some examples are studies carried out by Bazerman (2005) and Devitt (1991) on documents from professional contexts. In that regard, Bazerman (2005) discusses notions such as genre, genre sets, genre systems and activity systems. Language practices in professional contexts have also been the object of investigations among Brazilian research teams, for instance LAEL at PUC/SP and PUC/RJ, in efforts to understand how the participants of a communicative event interact and how their lexicogrammatical choices construe meaning. In that sense, the present study approaches the system of genres adopted in the selective process for hiring a salesperson, conducted by a cooperative company in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. This system of genres comprises several texts: Want Ad, Presentation Letter, Curriculum Vitae and Interview. The objective of this study is to investigate the system of genres for job application from the perspective of language as social practice with a focus on practices circumsbribed to the work sphere. This way, the struture of the texts within this system of genres is analyzed using the framework of Systemic-Functional Linguistics (Halliday, 1994; 2004 and Halliday & Hasan, 1989). The texts are analyzed in their organizational patterns and clauses are classified considering the type of processes, according to the System of Transitivity. Besides, the communicative purposes as welll as the characterization of the participants in the activities system are identified. Contrary to initial expectations, the interview was pointed out in the results as the most relevant genre in evaluating the applicants. Overall, the results offer an understanding of the interaction as characterized by specific aims in a particular professional sphere and can be valid for language educators, mainly those who work with Portuguese as mother tongue for instrumental purposes with a focus on professional genres. / Estudos em Análise de Gênero têm sido desenvolvidos a fim de explorar a tipificação de gêneros do contexto do trabalho e interpretar suas funções de acordo com as comunidades discursivas em que operam. Alguns exemplos são os estudos desenvolvidos por Bazerman (2005) e Devitt (1991) sobre documentos de contextos profissionais. Em vista disso, Bazerman (2005) discute noções sobre gênero, conjunto de gêneros, sistema de gêneros e sistema de atividades. A linguagem voltada a contextos profissionais também tem sido objeto de análise para grupos de pesquisa brasileiros, por exemplo, o do LAEL da PUC/SP e o da PUC/RJ, no sentido de compreender como os participantes de um evento comunicativo interagem e como suas escolhas léxico-gramaticais constroem significado. Assim, o tema do presente estudo diz respeito ao sistema de gêneros de um processo seletivo para contratação de vendedor autônomo, realizado em uma empresa cooperativa do interior do Rio Grande do Sul. Esse sistema de gêneros acomoda vários textos: Anúncio de Emprego, Carta de Apresentação, Curriculum Vitae e Entrevista Pessoal. O objetivo deste estudo é investigar o sistema de gêneros da seleção a emprego a partir da perspectiva de linguagem como prática social, com ênfase nas práticas relacionadas às esferas do trabalho. Desse modo, a estrutura dos exemplares desse sistema de gêneros é descrita a partir de propostas da Lingüística Sistêmico-Funcional (Halliday, 1994; 2004 e Halliday e Hasan, 1989). São identificados os padrões de organização dos textos e classificados os processos das orações, conforme o Sistema de Transitividade. E, são identificados os propósitos comunicativos e o perfil dos participantes desse sistema de atividades. Na avaliação dos candidatos, contrariando a expectativa inicial, os resultados destacam a relevância maior para a Entrevista Pessoal. Enfim, a discussão aponta à compreensão de como se dá a interação, caracterizada por propósitos específicos em uma situação profissional e pode ser válida para os profissionais da linguagem, principalmente, àqueles que trabalham com o ensino instrumental da língua materna, voltado aos gêneros do contexto empresarial.

The study is based on the lexical choices in the social context of EkeGusii circumcision and the meaning of the various lexical items used in the social context of circumcision and gender differentiation in the choice of the lexicon of EkeGusii circumcision. This special variety is also used within EkeGusii standard variety but when used in the context of circumcision, the meaning of the lexical items is understood based on context. It is believed that language embodies traditional values and that these values are socially conditioned. This study considers the social conditioning of the circumcision social varieties. Linguistic traditional values of EkeGusii language are reflected in, among others, gender differentiation in the choice of the lexicon in the social context of circumcision. The study was based on two theories; the social theory and contrastive lexico-semantic theory. Social theory was useful in analyzing language in society and what language means to its users while contrastive lexico-semantic theory was useful in analyzing EkeGusii culture-specific meaning which does not translate readily to English. Participatory observation, interview schedules, informers, questionnaires and introspection were used to collect data. Data was analyzed qualitatively in view of the choice of the lexicon within language variation. Findings showed that the sound plays an important role in postulating meaning of EkeGusii Circumcision Social Varieties (ECSV) through vowel lengthening. The lexicon of ECSV comprises nouns and verbs and that this lexicon is a style as well as register of EkeGusii. Gender differentiation in the language is a case of socialization rather than biological. Finally, meaning relations established by the lexicon of ECSV include synonymy, hyponymy, polysemy as well as antonymy. It is recommended in this study that teachers should be trained on Sociolinguistics, carry out classroom research to identify the learners’ sociolinguistic culture and integrate an individual learner with others in the same level especially since the school has taken the role of socialization of an individual. / African Languages / M.A. (African languages)